Share This Story!

Five reasons why the Obamacare decision is important

The Supreme Court's decision upholding the use of federal tax credits in President Obama's health care law will have an immediate effect on consumers, insurers, doctors, hospitals and the government itself.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision upholding the use of federal tax credits in President Obama's health care law will have an immediate impact on consumers, insurers, doctors, hospitals — and the balance of power between the three branches of government.

• Consumers: Of the 6.4 million people who receive tax credits to help pay for their insurance premiums, researchers from the non-profit think tank RAND Corp. estimate 70% likely would have dropped their coverage if the court ruled the other way. That means they couldn't have gotten free physicals and other preventive treatment and there would be no caps on total out of pocket costs that are part of the law.

• Insurance markets: A decision overturning the subsidies would have sent the insurance market into chaos as people most likely to keep their plans would be the sickest and older consumers. Unless Congress was able to fix the law, states would have needed to set up their own health care exchanges. A few — Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maine among them — were likely to do so. But most states with federal exchanges are run by Republican governors and legislatures reluctant to bail out a law they don't like.

• Doctors: A central tenet of Obamacare is that people who have insurance will go to the doctor more, so diseases will be caught earlier and overall health care costs will be reduced. Because the law also requires physicals and other preventive care to be fully covered at no cost to consumers — providing they have insurance — it means more business for doctors.

• Hospitals: The law reduces the burden on hospitals, which have to treat every patient who shows up in their emergency rooms. Hospitals face an average of $900 a year in costs for every uninsured person in their states, according to a new study. Hospitals still face high uncompensated-care costs for treating poor people who aren't getting Medicaid in states that chose not to expand it.

• The government: The court's ruling demonstrates that it is willing to defer to Congress and the White House on matters of statutory interpretation. The working majority in this case — with Chief Justice John Roberts and Anthony Kennedy siding with the court's four liberal members — said the entire law must be taken in context. A court once seen as overly aggressive in areas such as campaign finance and voting rights took a back seat this time.

The crowd reacts as the ruling on same-sex marriage was announced outside of the Supreme Court in Washington. The court declared that same-sex couples have a right to marry anywhere in the U.S. Jacquelyn Martin, AP

Supporters of same-sex marriage celebrate outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, Friday June 26, 2015, after the court declared that same-sex couples have a right to marry anywhere in the U.S. Jacquelyn Martin, AP

Attorney Evan Wolfson is seen at his office at the Freedom to Marry organization in New York. His arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court to recognize gay couples' constitutional right to marry has proved victorious. Wolfson has fought for most of his adult life to have same-sex marriage legalized in the United States. Timothy A. Clary, AFP/Getty Images

Carlos McKnight of Washington, waves a flag in support of gay marriage outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, prior to the court's decision on recognizing gay marriage was released. Jacquelyn Martin, AP

Interns run across the plaza of the Supreme Court in Washington to deliver the written opinions to television stations, an event sometimes referred to as the "running of the interns." Jacquelyn Martin, AP

Jonathan Contreras, left, and Bonnie Casillas hold balloons that spelled out "love" in support of gay marriage outside of the Supreme Court in Washington. The court is expected to hand down decisions today. Two major opinions, health care and gay marriage, are among the remaining to be released before the term ends at the end of June. Jacquelyn Martin, AP

A rainbow flag in front of the Supreme Court. The high court is expected rule in the next few days on whether states can prohibit same sex marriage, as 13 states currently do. Mark Wilson, Getty Images

Jessica Ellis, right, with "yay 4 ACA" sign, and other supporters of the Affordable Care Act react with cheers as the opinion for health care is reported outside of the Supreme Court on Thursday. Jacquelyn Martin, AP

People line up outside the Supreme Court on Thursday, where justices will soon reveal their decisions on several high-profile cases, including Obamacare and gay marriage. Jim Lo Scalzo, European Pressphoto Agency